Many universities have premedical honors programs to assist in the recruitment of qualified applicants to medical school; some of them have guaranteed admission. Most honors programs address academic performance in admissions criteria, but also evaluate other factors which vary by institution. The Honors Medical Scholars (HMS) Program at our institution was originally developed as a recruitment tool but has evolved to enhance and support the mission of the College of Medicine, which is to produce patient-centered physicians who will care for underserved, minority, rural and aging populations. Family Medicine and other primary care specialties are best equipped to achieve this outcome so that is now also considered in the selection process for the HMS program. There are factors that make primary care, rural location or care of underserved populations more likely. Research has demonstrated that student intention to practice primary care, training experiences and female gender increase the likelihood of choosing a career in a primary care specialty. Rural birth, interest in caring for underserved or minority populations, and rural or inner-city training experiences all significantly increased the likelihood of students choosing primary care, rural and underserved careers. Students from rural backgrounds, plan to choose Family Medicine at matriculation to medical school and are male have historically been more likely to practice rural Family Medicine. All of these factors are deliberately considered in the selection process for the Honors Medical Scholars Program. Our program was initiated in 2006 with the initial goal to increase retention of high caliber applicants to medical school and reduce the loss of these applicants to other medical schools. With this program, we identified an opportunity to recruit students to Family Medicine based on the unique mission of the allied College of Medicine. The program selection criteria have evolved to include factors determined by other research to increase the likelihood of interest in Family Medicine, underserved populations and rural health care. It is our hope that early identification of candidates at the college entry will increase the admission and support of students who will have a greater propensity to choose Family Medicine as a specialty. Over time, our program outcomes such as residency choice, practice location, and communities served will provide evidence of the success of this type of recruitment program. Eventually, this and similar programs may impact physician workforce shortages and geographic mal-distribution that result in gaps in access to care and exacerbate disparities suffered by at-risk populations. FMDRL_ID: 5244#2015 #Conferences #ConferenceonMedicalStudentEducation